Thursday, September 27, 2007
A dinner worth re-living...
As per Kent's request, here are some more pictures of us enjoying the feast he prepared earlier this month...
Tuesday, September 25, 2007
Czech Pizza
It's always interesting to see how other cultures do the ubiquitous pizza. Quality definitely varies...from places like Egypt where the concept of a crust is not understood, to Italy where some people say the pizza originated. Each country has its own toppings to fit the tastes of the locals. Some put a fried egg on top, others go with black beans.
The Czech Republic is no different. Blanka probably knows of better pizza places (they're everywhere), but the one I went to wasn't half bad. The crust was decent and the topics seemed fresh. Plus, you got a huge portion so you left full. Unlike the cake, though, I think this food actually goes well with pivo (or "beer" for anyone who hasn't lived in the Czech Republic so long that they no longer refer to the drink as beer).
Medovnik and Marlenka
Once again, see below.... apparently Kent forgot to take notes while in Prague.
The cake in the picture is Medovnik, a delicious honey cake that is pretty much on every desert menu in Prague. If you get the original Medovnik (don't accept any substitutes) it should be soft, moist and not too sweet. Goes great with coffee and tea or as is the usual case in Prague, Pivo!
There is another variation of honey cake known as Marlenka. This one has a caramel type of cream in the middle and also comes in a cocoa version with white cream. I prefer Marlenka because of my love for all things caramel, although I will eat either on any occasion.
You can find more info. on the websites.
Blanka
The cake in the picture is Medovnik, a delicious honey cake that is pretty much on every desert menu in Prague. If you get the original Medovnik (don't accept any substitutes) it should be soft, moist and not too sweet. Goes great with coffee and tea or as is the usual case in Prague, Pivo!
There is another variation of honey cake known as Marlenka. This one has a caramel type of cream in the middle and also comes in a cocoa version with white cream. I prefer Marlenka because of my love for all things caramel, although I will eat either on any occasion.
You can find more info. on the websites.
Blanka
Friday, September 21, 2007
Honey Cake
I think all Czechs and foreigners in the Czech Republic can relate to how good this cake is. I think it has a special name (Blanka?), and I think it comes in another variety or two (Blanka?).
I did a lot of thinking in that last paragraph....
Wednesday, September 19, 2007
Bryndzove Halušky
See Kent's post below: the yummy dish he is reffering to is a hearty meal that made me smile at lunch in Slovakia.
Bryndzove Halušky is composed of 2 parts (well 3 if you wanna get techincal). The Halušky or dumpling part of the meal is made using a special kind of strainer so that the dough (made from potatoes and flour) forms into distinctive small little balls. The Bryndza part is a special type of sheep cheese that envolopes the halušky in a creamy type of sauce. The cheese has a very distinctive taste and for me it tasted a lot different in Czech Republic than it did in Slovakia. The best part of the meal is the crunchy bacon bits they put on top, usually including a bit of the fat that it cooked in...completely done on purpose I presume. And the trick to eating halušky is to make sure that you proportion the bacon to last you the whole meal!
PS: Special thanks goes out to my central European keyboard for supplying the "š" in this post, without which I would be completely lost.
Bryndzove Halušky is composed of 2 parts (well 3 if you wanna get techincal). The Halušky or dumpling part of the meal is made using a special kind of strainer so that the dough (made from potatoes and flour) forms into distinctive small little balls. The Bryndza part is a special type of sheep cheese that envolopes the halušky in a creamy type of sauce. The cheese has a very distinctive taste and for me it tasted a lot different in Czech Republic than it did in Slovakia. The best part of the meal is the crunchy bacon bits they put on top, usually including a bit of the fat that it cooked in...completely done on purpose I presume. And the trick to eating halušky is to make sure that you proportion the bacon to last you the whole meal!
PS: Special thanks goes out to my central European keyboard for supplying the "š" in this post, without which I would be completely lost.
Monday, September 17, 2007
Blanka Will Have to Help Me Out with the Name of this Dish
Whatever the name of this dish is, it was damn good. Blanka tells me it's even better in Slovakia. It's some noodle-type thing with cheese.
Thursday, September 13, 2007
From the "Things You Don't See Everyday" Column..
Make sure you view the full version. Need I say more?
(Picture compliments of my friends Jayson and Kristin - Shot in Vietnam)
Filet O' Fish
It was rather convenient that Safeway had a fresh 2.6kg salmon available for us. We were suprised that they even had one. There were no fish in the display case, but upon asking the lady behind the counter, we learned that they had a fish stowed in the fridge. It would be perfect for our little attempt at Canadian night.
As you can see from the pictures above, I had some fun fileting the fish. Thanks to the Turkish intern, Irem, for boning the fish. I don't think anyone encountered any bones.
I'll try to round up some pics of the feast. We had grilled potatoes, tomatoes, mushrooms, eggplant, asparagus, garlic bread, and peppers. Plus I roasted some garlic, which I turned into a spread that went on the fresh bread from the oven. And, of course, the main event: two giant salmon filets. One maple syrup-glazed, the other balsamic vinegar and oregano.
The night finished off with some crepes and strawberries. Amber provided the crepes, while I whipped up a little flambe.
Sunday, September 09, 2007
Palacinka
This is the savoury version of palacinka (Czech version of crepes). They're stuffed with spinach and topped with cheese. Stay tuned for the sweet version....
Friday, September 07, 2007
More Czech Goulash
I believe Blanka already posted a photo of Czech goulash, but for us non-Czech residents, you can never have enough goulash, right? It's meat cooked forever so that it becomes stringy and good. Some people don't like the dumplings, I hear, but they soak up the gravy quite nicely. Whatever you do, though, do no expect vegetables with this meal. It is 100% pure "keep me warm in the winter" goodness.
